Underneath It All
by TheWhammy'sBoysAreACircus
Summary: One-Shot, KazumaxNora: Takes Place during the end of book 1. Instead of going berserk on Knell, Nora turns to Kazuma for an explanation of his bleeding. Kazuma means well, but Nora means better. Nora takes it upon himself to clean Kazuma's right hand.


Underneath It All

_**I've Never had a pet of my own.**_- Text taken directly from 'NORA: The Last Chronicle of Devildom' Manga 1

_For now_- The hidden meaning to Nora's words/Nora's thoughts

**That's enough. I'll be fine now.**- The hidden meaning to Kazuma's words/Kazuma's thoughts

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING of NORA (I wish I did though so I could own Leonard, Rivan, and Barik), NORA belongs to Kakei Kazunari and all characters and magical references go to him.

Story Author: Your favorite Circus Act: TheWhammy'sBoysAreACircus

Pairing(s): KazumaxNora

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Underneath It All

Knell grinned at Kazuma, his eyes falling to Kazuma's right hand. "_**That right hand… Seems to be in a great deal of pain.**_"

"… _**What about it**_?" snapped Kazuma.

Nora's eyes widened, zeroing in on the blood rolling from the Cerberus mark on Kazuma's palm. He was hurting? Why didn't he _tell_ Nora? Nora… Well, Nora would've stopped!

"_**The pain is trying to tell you something. It's trying to say that your body can no longer endure the release of magical power**_," Knell explained as if talking to a moron.

"_**Huh**_?" Nora questioned. He hadn't been paying attention and fell into his role of moron. "_**What's that mean**_?"

Knell sighed in exasperation. "_**Do you understand exactly how a human makes a demon his familiar spirit**_**?**" He folded his arms confidently across his chest.

"_**You entrust your magic to the human**_!" Nora exclaimed. He _knew_ this and _would_ make it known he knew! "_**And your magic can't be used unless there's an approval**_!"

Knell rolled his eyes and began his explanation, noting the odd mini-pictures above his head that accompanied his explaining. "_**Well, the magical power is released by the contract holder, who is the 'vessel' for your magic power**_." Nora's eye twitched. No duh. "_**If a demon uses too much magic too soon, a burden starts to build on its 'vessel'**_**.**" The pictures above his head were amusing. Nora stared at them oddly before Knell continued explaining. "_**The more magic used**_," Knell went on, "_**the greater the potential damage**_." Nora flashed back to going Cerberus on that bug that attacked Kazuma's school two months ago. "_**If we're talking about a spirit like our Hell-Hound… The seal's released a lot, which consumes magic power constantly. Result: Kaboom.**_

"_**In other words, Kazuma, you've pushed your body to the limit! It's been a pleasure knowing you, pal**_!"

Nora glanced back at Kazuma whose features were carefully blank.

"_**What…?!**_" Nora rounded on the brunette. "_**My magic's been damaging you?! Why didn't you tell me**_?" he demanded, his eyes focused on the bloody hand. _Tell me you didn't want me to worry_, Nora's mind commanded.

"_**It's not all that big of a deal**_," Kazuma replied nonchalantly, not caring that he was angering the Cerberus.

"_**Don't lie! You're really losing blood!**_" _I'm concerned, tell the truth!_ "_**Why don't you revoke the contract if it hurts so much?!**_" _I don't want to lose you; set me free if you must._ Nora and Kazuma were nose-to-nose, completely forgetting Knell. Nora's hand tightened around Kazuma's shirt as he glared him down. Kazuma met Nora's multicolored gaze and blinked curiously. Knell cleared his throat and went ignored. Said Resistance Member glanced at his familiar, concern for his enemies evident.

"_**Because I'm having fun**_," was the cruel reply from Kazuma as they glared.

"…_**What…?**_" Nora glared. As Kazuma spoke next, the brunette slapped Nora's hands from him.

"_**I've never had a pet before. It's worth the pain to have a dog of my very own**_," Kazuma replied. Nora growled and caught his right hand in both of his, bringing it to his eye level.

"Hey, guys…" Knell called. He silenced at the glare given to him by Kazuma. Knell moved to the side, upset that all he could see was Kazuma's face and Nora's back. Once moved, he had a clear view of what went on, though it wasn't what he really would've liked to see.

"Stray," Kazuma threatened. He went ignored. "'I forbi-'"

"Why?" Nora whispered. _I want to help_. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Let. Go." Kazuma glared. **I don't need your help.**

"Stupid Human," Nora murmured affectionately. Knell's eye twitched in confusion and annoyance. What the hell?! _I don't care; I will help you, Stupid_.

"Nora," Kazuma growled. **Bad dog. Bad. Dog.** His eyes widened at Nora's next actions. Nora's eyes fell closed as he brought Kazuma's bloody palm to his mouth, pressing it to him. He gently began to clean the wound, his left hand holding Kazuma's right hand in place. Kazuma's thumb, index, and middle fingers were on the right side of Nora's nose, his pinky and ring finger on the other side. Nora's hand on top of his was split the same way. Kazuma watched Nora, his brows furrowed in thought as he analyzed the silver haired teen's words and hidden meanings.

"Hey, guys~?" Knell sang in question.

"Stray," Kazuma said. **That's enough. I'll be fine now.**

Nora opened his eyes and met his contract holder's gaze. "Stupid Human." _For now. _

Gently, Nora released Kazuma's hand and turned to face Knell, licking Kazuma's blood from his lips.

"Whoa, dude, are you like a vampire Mutt or something?" Knell joked.

Nora grinned. "Wanna give me some blood and test it?" Knell swallowed as Nora raised his hands.

"Stray Dog, again!" Kazuma commanded. **I know how to win. I know how we can take him down… Nora.**

"Fine. 'I Declare' Igunisu Magia: Flame Fang Explosion!" Knell laughed. _I'll show this creepy perv._

"'I Approve'," was Kazuma's simple reply. _Correction: We Will._


End file.
